The present invention relates to a wind-protecting skeleton for folding umbrella, and more particularly to an umbrella wind-protecting skeleton that includes rigid wires and flexible pull cords to pull outer ribs of the umbrella inward and does not interfere with a smooth collapsing of the folding umbrella.
FIG. 1 shows a general skeleton for a folding umbrella that typically includes a shaft 11 having multiple telescopic sections, an upper hub 12 fixedly connected to a top of the shaft 11, a lower hub 13 upward and downward movable along the shaft 11, multiple sets of rib members (A), and an umbrella cover 14 connected to and covering a top of the rib members.
Taking a folding umbrella having two telescopic sections in the shaft 11 as an example, each set of rib members (A) include a stretcher 2, an outer rib 3, an auxiliary rib 4, and a link 5, which are pivotally connected to one another in a predetermined manner. The stretcher 2 and the auxiliary rib 4 are pivotally connected at their inner ends to the lower and the upper hubs 13, 12, respectively. When the lower hub 13 is pushed upwardly, all the stretchers 2, the auxiliary ribs 4, the links 5, and the outer ribs 3 of the umbrella are sequentially outwardly extended to stretch the umbrella. And, when the lower hub 13 is downwardly pulled, all the stretchers 2, the auxiliary ribs 4, the links 5, and the outer ribs 3 of the umbrella are sequentially inwardly pulled to collapse the umbrella.
When the umbrella in a stretched state is subject to a strong wind that inclines the umbrella and blows against an inner side of the cover 14, an outer peripheral area of the cover 14 supported by the outer ribs 3 that have relatively weak structure bears a considerably big wind force (P) and tends to be turned upward, as shown in FIG. 2.
It is a primary object of the present invention to provide a wind-protecting skeleton for folding umbrella to protect the umbrella against upward turned or broken outer ribs under a strong wind force.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a wind-protecting skeleton for folding umbrella that does not interfere with a smooth collapsing of the folding umbrella.
To achieve the above and other objects, the wind-protecting skeleton for folding umbrella of the present invention includes a rib-pulling mechanism mounted between each stretcher and each corresponding outer rib of the umbrella. The rib-pulling mechanism includes a flexible pull cord having an inner knotted end connected to a predetermined position on the stretcher and an outer knotted end movably connected to an eye at an inner end of a rigid wire. An eye at an outer end of the rigid wire is pivotally connected to a coupling device fixedly connected to a predetermined position on the outer rib. When the umbrella is stretched, the flexible pull cord and the rigid wire together pull the outer rib inward to protect the same from turning upward or breaking due to a strong wind force against an inner side of the umbrella.